2. Setting up your course modules
Guide: Content & Activities - Contents
- Start with learning outcomes
- Setting up your course modules
- Understanding course pages
- Adding content and resources
- Designing great activities
- Setting up your course homepage
- How do I use page templates and learning design patterns?
High quality modules:
- Are relevant to the learning outcomes
- Are well structured with a relevant and logical flow
- Build topic knowledge appropriately
- OpenLearning Course Quality Criteria
Now that you have your learning outcomes, you're ready to determine what major topics learners need to learn in order to achieve them. These are known as modules.
Modules provide the overall structure within your course.
For example, in a Sustainable Thinking course, the modules might be:
Module 1: What is Sustainable Thinking?
Module 2: Our Current Consumption Habits
Module 3: Sustainable Eating
Module 4: Sustainable Living
Within each module are the content, resources and activities that will help learners understand your subject. Content, resources and activities in OpenLearning are added to pages within each module.
The sequencing of your modules is also important for learners to not only build their topic knowledge in a logical and appropriate flow, but also for capturing your learners' interest.
For example, getting learners to understand and practice sustainable thinking challenges in the first module, will enable them to apply that mindset to different living areas throughout the course.
How to set up modules in OpenLearning
To set up your modules, go to Course Design > Content editor.
We recommend your first module to be a Getting Started module - with your homepage, course outline and any preliminary info learners need for your course.
Thereafter, sequence your modules in a way that makes sense for your topic and that will also make your subject interesting to your learners (what is an interesting hook for learners to get excited about your subject?). Capture their interest early!
